the election. and this from carl. chris christie is able to put aside political differences in a time of disaster. quite different from now democrats treated president bush after katrina. this from james. fitting it tacks an act of god to finally spotlight romney's weaknesses. thank you for your responses and joining me today. "cnn newsroom" continues right now with ashleigh banfield. >> thank you so much. it's 11:00 on the east coast. 8:00 a.m. on the west coast. recovery is a word you are going to be hearing a lot of in the next few days. the word normalcy, not so much. in the wake of superstorm sandy, normal life is a far off dream for so many millions in the northeast corridor and points west. worst of all, a still growing toll of lives lost. at least 40 in the u.s. one so far in canada. more than 6 million homes and

businesses still don't have electricity but that is a big improvement from yesterday. and while floods and surges with some exceptions have gone down, that just makes the devastation all the more apparent. you are looking at point pleasant beach halfway between new york and atlantic city on the new jersey shore. president obama visiting these scenes this afternoon. the final day in full-on disaster mode before he gets back to the campaign tomorrow. a little global perspective for you right now, though. the scope and the magnitude of hurricane sandy from the satellite image courtesy of nasa. atlantic city is a sitting duck in the middle of the path. the jersey shore easy prey for those ruthless winds. the powerful surges and the relentless force of the images that you are seeing now. and now, this. parts of atlantic city simply decimated as sandy made landfall

near the shores and in a few hours president obama gets an up close and personal look at all of the images you are seeing on your screen. he's heading to new jersey to tour the state with governor chris christie later on this afternoon. while the republican governor may be one of the most prominent backers and surrogates of governor mitt romney, governor christie is vocal and public with the praise of president obama and the federal government's overall response to hurricane sandy. that's going to be help that's crucial to new jersey residents because just look at what they're facing. these are some of the newest pictures of the shore. where you can see that entire communities have been washed away, buried in sand or just ripped apart by the force of sandy. home after home, practically washed out to sea, in fact. rivers have just sprung up where previously there was only sand. more than 75% of the jersey shore is actually flooded and

more than 2 million customers in new jersey have no power. look at the water still there. unbelievable. six people so far the toll of those who have died in jersey. this is the reality for the state right now. fires springing up looking like gas burning and look at this. seaside heights. one of the communities you are looking at now. that's a roller coaster or at least it was. right now in the middle of the atlantic. block after block is entirely consumed by this superstorm. the may why are of seaside heights, mayor bill acres live on the telephone with us now. mayor, let's start by saying how sorry i am and the rest of america, everyone watching and seen the devastation, how sorry we all are for you and your neighbors and your residents there. what is your latest assessment of what you're facing? >> i'm sorry. i'm having a hard time hearing

you. i don't know if you can hear me real well. >> we have you loud and clear now. >> i got you. >> an overall assessment, the latest of what you know of the devastation there. >> what we're doing right now is just trying to clean off the roads. every time we go up and down with the patrol cars, popping tires. making sure that everyone we didn't get to, while we have daylight. because we have no power. while we have daylight we're trying to get to each and every person that needs help that's remained here and try to get them across to the shelters. >> that's exactly what i was concerned about is getting anybody out who's still there and in need of help and, of course, the next step is getting back in to recover anything and that requires, the bridges. you are a barrier island so completely exposed. what's the status of

reconnecting to mainland? >> if there's any good news out that the water receded, the roadways are accessible. but we still have downed power lines. we are not letting anybody in at that particular time. we are still continuing, though, to take people out. any people that we can find we are still continuing to evacuate. no access to the power right now for any civilians right now other than personnel. we have them here here. we have new jersey natural gas. they have crews in town. we have crews coming up from alabama with telephone poles. just trying to get some order in to where we can try to get things back on street by street. it's a long process but -- and i really don't have a timetable yet. >> i can't even imagine this as i'm looking at the pictures and

hearing you describe to the best of your knowledge. i think i can hear the exhaustion in your voice and the last 48 hours must have been sheer hell for you and your residents. i don't know where you begin and how to ask the question we're seei inin ining the pictures, s >> i said the same thing to myself. i think -- i just want to try to keep the emotion out of it. it's just for everybody, it's -- this is a loss for everybody. and i mean not just seaside heights. the only updates i get is tapped in to the shows and doing interviews with and listening in the background of what's going on in other places. i'm blessed, though. i have very good people around me. very strong, very knowledgeable, very hard working, selfless individuals, volunteers and the professionals that are employed by the borough of seaside

heights and so blessed to have that. my job is managing. they're physically out there. i'm -- we're riding around at 2:00 in the morning and pulling people out of the water. we're riding around and seeing the people and the cars floating down the street and they do this with no regard for anything other than they want to do the right thing and help. you get inspired by things like that and i just don't know where it comes from in individuals like this. >> it is amazing what you're extraordinarily brave first responders and rescuers have been doing. i don't think that's overstated in any way and i think you are right. leaders, as well. you know, you may say you're riding around but, look, we know what you're up against. the pictures are pretty fresh and thought they looked bad yesterday. the pictures yesterday were nothing compared to what we are seeing today. it looks as though there's a new portion of the ocean and looks as though the ocean is

completely consumed seaside heights. it's so remarkable. mayor, chris christie is vocal about the state to come together, the need for the nation to come together for new jersey and, look, new york and connecticut and maryland and delaware and everywhere else that's been hit, how are you lee yazing with the state? what's the next step in terms of just getting the funds and the people and the manpower and the guards men and everything else that you need just to begin this horrible path? >> that's the thing. we're just -- we're at ground zero. we're taking baby steps right now. you know, we are expecting some help from the state, the coordination of efforts. we finally got the national guards coming in today. we are setting up command centers for the public service, for the services for the y

utilities, state police. we're just going through our communication, our but roug minister in contact. we're going to document the best that we can through any written and photos and things like that and we'll sort it out at the end but right now it's just trying to, you know, just trying to get some of semblance of what was. when you're looking at those pictures, what they thought of seaside heights before, it won't ever be the same again. it won't be the seaside heights. it will be different. we had the peers. they're in the ocean. you're seeing visual pictures of above. the structure underneath, the pilings, people's foundations, things that you can't really see right now, this is -- it's actually catastrophic. i don't know where i'm going to walk through this. i have good people to guide me

and help me take it through the process but i know -- >> when you look at the helicopter shots and you're talking about what you have lost already, i'm just wondering if you even know the full extent. have you been up in the helicopter yet? do you have a feel for where the devastation begins and ends or are you still putting together lists of what's not there, you know, even trying to check with those who could tell you what used to be there to know what's not there anymore? >> absolutely. absolutely correct. i have not been up. i don't know if i'm ready to be up to see that. we are taking inventory. we are going around and documenting. we're doing all of the things you're supposed to do by the book in the beginning. as far as total devastation, we haven't dealt with the emotional side. when everyone does get back at some point when that point is the emotional point of dealing with each and every individual to come back to this community

and face what we're facing right now, so we're going to just do the best we can and give the support. we are a small community and seems like the best community and when it's tougher, we're the best community. and i know i've got good people. >> i, again, i started this interview saying i'm so sorry and i know that anybody who's watching right now has to feel exactly the same way. the hearts and minds of america goes out to you and to your neighbors, to your constituents, to the rest of those in new jersey who are suffering under this terrible, terrible wrath. i'm so sorry for you and the best of luck to you and i do hope you can at least get some sleep before you start an even more terrible task of trying to rebuild. mayor akers of seaside heights, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> wow. that is just a lot to try to grasp and based on the latest numbers, 2 million people plus in new jersey have no power to start the rebuilding is going to

be a huge leap. the mayor said something about baby steps and just starting. well, here's something you can do for those baby steps. going to take a monumental task, folks, but you can reach out to those affected go. to cnn.com/impact. there are all sorts of ways that you can help the victims of hurricane and superstorm sandy and don't forget that red cross.org is also a terrific way to help out and god knows they're going to need it. [ ryan ] it doesn't get any better than endless shrimp at red lobster. you can mix and match all day! [ male announcer ] don't miss red lobster's endless shrimp, just $14.99! try as much as you like, any way you like! like parmesan crusted shrimp. hurry in, offer ends soon! i'm ryan isabell and i see food differently.

and the candidate's speech is in pieces all over the district. the writer's desktop and the coordinator's phone are working on a joke with local color. the secure cloud just received a revised intro from the strategist's tablet.

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want to take you to the city of hoboken, new jersey, right now. this tightly packed hamlet of 50,000 people is an exception to the falling floodwaters because at last report there were thousands of people still trapped. this is wednesday. still trapped or stranded amid the floodwater that is are contaminated with sewage and gasoline and who knows what else? last night after pleading of hoboken's mayor, here's the national guard. they finally arrived to help carry out the rescues so badly needed in hoboken. so you can see the pain and trus frags in the mayor voice, she was sharing frustration with gary tuchman last night.

>> i had a grandmother i had to tell, i'm so sorry. we can't get in to get your grandchildren. they're 7-month-old twins running out of food. last spoke to her grandchildren or her daughter this morning and she said i think i have enough food to get through the night. i can't get to and i cannot help them. >> we're going to keep you posted on hoboken's progress and the rescues there, as well. we have one sign of progress to share with you in new york city today and that's john f. kennedy airport. it is finally open. and nearby newark liberty also open and ready for business. you can't expect meaningful traffic for a while get. new york's laguardia, no. it's not going to open. tarmacs should not look like lakes. look at this ireport picture that we got. it's just remarkable. the jetway in to what looks like long island sound with waves. it's just unbelievable. these are the tarmacs and the

runways. damage said to be extensive and that's going to affect air travel all over the country. and then to underscore one of the things that new yorkers are dealing with, if they don't have power they're not seeing television and look at the newspapers. this is "the new york daily news." this is the devastation. apocalypse, new york. that's more than 80 homes in breezy point. just blocks and blocks of rubble. if you flip this newspaper around, that's what manhattan's like at night for people in the southern part of the island. just big swaths of black with no power at all an then showing you from "the new york post," as well. when i saw this picture, it really kind of underscored the iconic image of new york underwater. you know the cabs of new york city and blast of sandy such an impact. the papers just coming out today for the first time. nothing yesterday. about the only news people can

get. reporting on the street yesterday i had loads of people saying, what's happening? we don't have any power. we can't get any news. when do we get the power back? cnn's rob marciano out on the streets of manhattan right now and he is working day after day, as well. probably hearing the same questions i am. tell, not only the viewers across america but anybody who might have had power back up again today, where do we stand in the city trying to get back up on our feet? >> reporter: well, the power situation is pretty the same. yesterday, down to con edison just down the road from here and got in to the situation room and as you would imagine the task of getting this city back on the grid is immense and all has to do with the substation on 14th street submerged by over 14 feet of water. designed for the 12-foot surge. that's worst-case scenario. sandy brought in a worse than

worst-case scenario. it takes two days for everyone south to get back online. staten island to westchester county, talking about ten-plus days. >> now, we have had the power story but we know that this city operates with its mass transit. 5.3 million people a day take the subways and just soaked. >> reporter: well, so the buses are up and running. right? as close to a weekday schedule as they can but the people normally underground taking the subway and now they're above ground looking for the buses to come by. well, we haven't seen a bus come by and stop because they're loading up downtown and getting to 14th street they're completely full. same day with the kabs. you see people having to walk where they need to walk. take bikes where they need to bike. meet a gentleman here. this is luther lee. using by the way the power cord to charge the phone. one of many taking advantage of that. you live in the area. you work in the area. you work -- you walk to work and

what did you find getting there? >> finally about three people there. the boss is there and nothing happening. no power. they're waiting on the phones to get up but not looking like it's likely. >> reporter: you live right by the river. so what was life like for you the night the storm came in? how close did the water get? >> i live on the fifth floor. i looked out the window and looked three stories high. it's just bad. lived in the city my whole life. been through 9/11, the blackout. and this is something bad. real bad. >> reporter: how do you think the city will bounce back from this one? >> we're new yorkers so we're strong. might take a little while but no doubt in my mind we'll recover. might take a while like i said but we'll recover. >> reporter: thank you so much. letting people use the satellite truck to get the power. you were here yesterday. this hasn't changed. that incredible sight of a building that just saw its

entire facade ripped off the side. this seems to pale in comparison of jersey and across long island but certainly new yorkers here in manhattan, southern manhattan are reeling as well in their own special way. >> keep an eye on things and keep us updated with regard to that transit and power story and please give our best to mr. lee, as well. it's everybody's personal story. for more information of sandy, watching this and i can't imagine you're watching and not affected by this, go to cnn.com/impact. have a look at the different ways that you can help fellow americans who are really in need right now. [ ross ] in the taihang mountains of china, hand-carved on the side of a cliff is the guoliang tunnel. what?! you've got to be kidding me. [ derek ] i've never seen a road like this. there's jagged rock all the way around. this is really gonna test the ats on all levels.

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six days left until the election. mitt romney is back on the campaign trail today after postponing a certain event due to hurricane sandy. he is about to speak at a rally in tampa, florida. being introduced as we speak. jim acosta there following mitt romney. so obviously today the tone changes somewhat for the

governor but what can we expect to hear? >> reporter: i think we're getting a preview of that right now. jeb bush is on stage. marco rubio was at the podium and the florida governor, marco rubio steered clear of attacks on president obama. jeb bush on stage right now, he made a very interesting comment a few moments ago about storm response. he said it's the state and local response that really matters, not clear whether or not that was a dig at the president and the federal response that's going on and attention paid to the federal response. really, that'ses a close as either that they have come going after president obama in this event and lines up from what i heard of a top romney adviser this morning that the gop nominee striking a positive tone on the campaign trail. we heard mario rubio. i think the closest he got was

talking about the state of economy saying this doesn't have to be the new normal and seeing right now is maybe the new normal of the campaign at least for today, sort of steering clear from those really negative attacks that you hear out on the cam pan trail as campaign s win down. it's interesting with president obama and new jersey governor chris christie looking at storm damage later on today. that is one of mitt romney's top surrogates and so sort of fighting fire with fire in terms of surrogates, mitt romney on the campaign trail all day long with jeb bush and marco rubio, and i talked to a top romney adviser about whether or not the gop noom nominee is concerned or trouble with the president out with chris christie. one word from the romney campaign and that's none. speaking of mitt romney, it looks like he's coming out on stage now so i'll throw it back to. >> he is walking up on the stage right now, waving to the crowd, jim. let's listen in as the governor

takes to the podium and listen to how the tone may have changed as jim acosta was reporting. perhaps no negative attacks in that respect and governor bush did suggest as jim acosta just said that state and local response to this disaster is what really matters. let's see if the governor has anything further to add to that or if he talks at all about this disaster that we have been covering. obviously, that is very positive campaign rally as you can see from his supporters. listen. make no mistake. he and the campaign know what's happening across the country. >> thank you so much. thank you. [ chanting ] well, we got all sort of messages going on this morning. thank you. what an honor it is to be here

with these great individuals. you know that governor jeb bush. what a hero. don't you love that man? and your senator marco rubio, the whole world watches that man. extraordinary person. and thank you for coming together with your thoughts and prayers on behalf of his daughter amanda. she is well. she's at home. we're delighted and celebrating halloween tonight. so thank you for being with her. and connie mack, a great tradition, a great leader. and the next u.s. senator from florida. you got to make that happen. this is -- this is quite a time for the country. as you know, we're going through trauma in a major part of the country. kind of trauma you have experienced here in florida more than once. and it's interesting to see how people come together in a

circumstance like this. we've seen folks from all over the country step forward and offer contributions. you see it up on the screens, way to give to the red cross. people are doing that all over america, gathering their support in any way they can to help the people that have been subjected to this tragedy and so please if you have an extra dollar or two, send them along and keep the people who have been in harm's way, damaged personally or through the property, keep them in your thoughts and prayers. we love all of our fellow citizens. we come together in times like this and we want to make sure that they have a speedy and quick recovery of financial and in many cases personal loss. now people coming together is what's also going to happen i believe on november 7th. i know that we have differing

viewpoints with regards to the campaigns. up until that point, when we get to vote on november 6th, on november 6th you will see us describe the respective visions for the country. i believe that this is a time for america to take a different course, that this should be a turning point for our country aensay that because i look at where we are and with 23 million americans, you think about that. these are real people. these are folks trying to put food on the table. 23 million people struggling to find a good job. this is something that requires in my view a different path than we have been on. like wise, we have half the kids coming out of college who can't find work. this hasn't happened before in our country. we're at a 30-year low of new business formation. this is a challenge for a nation that normally grows through innovation and risk taking and start-ups of all kinds. we have one out of six people in

living poverty. we need to take a new course. we have 47 million people on food stamps. think of that. richest country in the history of the earth. largest economy in the world and yet 47 million people need food stamps so i believe that this is the year for us to take a different course. i will bring real change and real reform in a presidency that brings it together. now i don't just talk about change. i actually have a plan to execute change and to make it happen. and there are five parts to that and i hope you understand what they are. if you don't, let me just remind you. number one, i really do believe that we were given kind of an ace in the hole. and that is that someone learned how to drill in the earth not just vertically but horizontally

and tap in to pockets of gas and we have huge new resources of natural gas and oil an number one is take full advantage of the oil, our coal, our gas and nuclear and our renewables. and that -- that creates by the way a lot of jobs and the energy states, of course, but it creates a lot of jobs in states that use energy because manufacturing of all kinds uses energy. some more than others and when energy is low cost and abundant as it will be as we take advantage of these resources, why, we'll bring manufacturing back. it's already beginning to happen. we'll see more of it happen and more manufacturing back in the country. we'll see the economy take off with that. number one. number two, trade. it is good for us to be able to trade with other nations, particularly in latin america. and we have some real advantages in trading with latin america.

many of our citizens have roots there. we speak the language and many corners of our nation. the time zone is friendly for us. latin america's economy is almost as large as that of china. a large middle class and growing middle class. this is a big opportunity for us to trade and to expand the sales of our goods and services in latin america. but by the way, if nations cheat and china has over the years that has to end. we can't let them steal our jobs with unfair trade practices. number three -- number one is energy. number two is trade and number three is skills, not only for our current workers but also we've got to make sure that our schools stop being at the bottom of the pile. we are at the bottom third or bottom quartile. they have to be world class

globally competitive. you have done something about that here, governor. this governor was the education governor that all of us looked at with admiration. and he can describe this better than i can but one thing he did is grade schools to determine which ones are succeeding and which ones weren't and if a school is not succeeding why the kids in the school given the ability to go to another school. could be a charter school or another public school so kids got choice in part based upon the success of the schools. and i intend to do the same thing, helping all the states across the country, one, make sure that schools are graded so parents tell which ones are succeeding and which aren't. federal dollar that is we give to states and localities, two big buckets. one is called title i and then iaed money. the dollars will be funneled to

students so if a child wants to go to a different school or parents do, they have the capacity to do that. >> the governor speaking to a rousing rally in tampa, florida, at the international airport there. and to be sure, the campaign is back on track for the governor. he's on to the stump speech specifically but he began this address by stating specifically that he wants to keep the people of the northeast and those affected by hurricane and tropical storm and superstorm sandy in their thoughts and prayers in that auditorium and wishing everyone affected by this storm help. i want to rerack this. i thought he said we'll come together on november 7th and is not election day. let's rerack that and play that tape again. >> people coming together is what's also going to happen, i believe, on november 7th.

i know that we have differing viewpoints with regards to the campaigns up until that point but we get to november on 6th. on november 6th you will see us describe the respective visions for the country. my view is straightforward. >> i'm glad reracked that. people coming to together on november 7th is what he must have referred to as the aftermath of the election and people voting november 6th. let's see be clear. people without power, the election is on the 6th. day after the election is november 7th. by the way, make sure you tune in to complete coverage because we have got the election b blanketed on election night. we are also wall to wall on election night in america on live coverage begins tuesday, november 6th at 6:p.m. eastern time. we've got all of the expert analysis lined up that you have now come to expect on election

night so make sure you stay tuned, again. 6:00 p.m. eastern november 6th. maybe your bank account is taking too much time and maybe it's costing too much money. introducing bluebird by american express and walmart. your alternative to checking and debit. it's loaded with features, not fees. because we think your money should stay where it belongs. with you. the value you expect. the service you deserve. it feels good to bluebird. get it at your local walmart.

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want to get you up to speed on some of the -- i don't think there's any way to describe it. misery inflicted by superstorm sandy. more than 6 million homes and businesses if there are homes left are without power in 14 states. and the district of columbia. a day and a half after the storm slammed in to the jersey shore, our death count at this point is 40 people in the united states. one person in canada, as well. president obama is due to be touring what you're looking at right now. he is set to go to atlantic city, as well. little less than an hour. going to be with chris christie the governor of that state. it is his final day in disaster mode. full-on disaster mode, in fact.

canceled every campaign event and getting back to a form of campaigning tomorrow we are told. and as sandy moves away from new york, we're hearing some just truly amazing stories of the heroes who really put their lives at risk in this storm to help others. look at this little hero. drop the banner if we can. take a look at that little face. that's a survivor. little baby alice. hello, alice. little girl whose story is a spot of light. fully alert in a live tv interview just two days old and four weeks premature choosing to come in to the world just as new york was bracing for hurricane sandy. power went off. lights went out. less than 48 hours later alice and dad and her mom and the staff of the hospital were forced to evacuate using glo sticks. that's how they saw their way out. welcome to the world, little alice.

nice to see you. now, another premature baby struggling to stay alive made it through the storm despite all odds. this is little baby emma. she had some pretty remarkable people helping her along the way. great story and great person to bring it to you is sanjay gupta with the details. >> reporter: monday night, this baby, 13-day-old maybe martinez, a premie weighing 2 pounds needed to be transported from nyu langone hospital. at about 10:30 p.m., the ceo of mt. sinai dr. davis got the call. within an hour the babies started arriving. >> it is frightening. it's about as challenging as you can get and when you're dealing with tiny little babies who are so fragile, it really can be an

extraordinary circumstance. >> reporter: we're in front of nyu medical cent. mount sinai is several blocks to the north over there and about four blocks to the west and that's sort of the important point because just over there is the east river. what we now know is 7:00 p.m. there was no water inside that hospital. at 7:45, there was 10 feet. the power started to go out and then the generator failed. and all of a sudden the patients and the doctors found themselves in a worst-case scenario. as for the parents of little baby martinez, they found out the hospital and their daughter would be evacuated when they watched mayor michael bloomberg on tv. shortly after, they lost power and they had no idea where their baby would be taken. >> confirmed by family members calling moan the phone because suddenly i lost outage in my apartment. we had no access to the tv. no access to the internet. no phone services at home. it was just our cell.

>> reporter: just imagine the desperation, the nightmare. their 13-day-old baby rushed through the streets of new york city in the middle over hurricane sandy while they were stuck at home in new jersey. all they could do is hope, pray and wait for word of where to find their newborn. >> all the bridges were closed and we had no choice but to go back home and just sit and wait for today to get here and it was a very long night. very, very, very long night. i haven't had even one hour of sleep. >> reporter: dr. kenneth davis is also the man that okayed the transfer and now for the first time he will meet the baby he helped save. >> you need a hug. oh my goodness. >> thank you so very much. >> you're dad? >> yes, i am. >> wow. it's going to be. >> reporter: you have any names picked out? >> her name is 'em that sophia. >> and emma sophia, we are all

thinking about you. sanjay joins me here. had to be such a risk, to take any baby in perfect weather to move a baby like that. >> within a hospital, ashlee. to go from a floor to the next, i remember this in medical school. it was a coordinated effort and in this situation, under the gun. you don't have much time and not much power and relying on hands to continue to breathe for this baby. and obviously, in the middle of the storm, i mean, it's harrowing. there aren't many things i think in medicine not completely coordinated and in this case they had to but -- >> had to. is there a circumstance where you say, you know what? you can't move. we have to do whatever we can in these howling winds and this pitch black freezing cold. this is the only place certain patients can be treated? we cannot move them? >> yes. i have seen this around the world. you have gone, as well, where there's no other place better or

the circumstances dictate that. the problem here is that, you know, when you run out of power, these babies are so tenuous. they can change quickly and unlike an adult with reserve, they have none. someone has to sit there for hours if not days on end pumping that bag. if they don't do it, distracted. >> i learned that from you in katrina. >> right. >> hurricane katrina. well, great, great story. thank you for bringing that. you have the good ones and make me feel better when you show up. >> the babies are doing well. >> we had a tough start to the show to thank you. appreciate that. if you're feeling the same way i'm feeling and what can i do, to help those who maybe aren't as lucky as emma, we have a great way. check out cnn.com/impact. there are a myriad different ways to reach out from volunteering to straight donations and money. there's stuff you can do.

i highly encourage you. cnn.com/impact. [ female announcer ] e-trade technology can help make you a better investor. our e-trade 360 investing dashboard shows you where your money is, live. e-trade pro is so usable you'll actually use it. and our apps are the ultimate in mobile investing. become a better investor at e-trade.

ffor help finding a plan that's right for you, give unitedhealthcare a call today.

[ bell ] a smiling mayor bloomberg ringing the opening bell of the new york stock exchange after it was closed for two days because of the massive storm. it's back to business now on wall street as the city tries its best to get back to normal. lots of people won't be able to commute in, though, that's for sure, but our alison could. she's back at her usual spot at

the new york stock exchange. it nice to see you there and nice to see that things are back up and running. i didn't even think i was going to ask you this question, 48 hours from storm, but how are stocks doing? >> well, stocks actually are modestly lower, and, you know, the big thing about today, ashleigh, is that the markets are open, orders are being made, and orders are going through. you know, there is, believe it or not, even though the stocks are only modestly lower, there is that pent-up demand because markets have been closed for two days, so there is that pent-up demand to trade stocks today. volume is not as high as what was expected, but there is trading, nonetheless. this is a big day for trading for about 20% to 25% of the mutual funds in this country because for them it's the end of the fiscal year. they're closing out their calendar year. they use this day to square up their position before they send out statements. you'll see more window dressing like a day like today, but they're working around a lot of obstacles. the lights are on right now here, ashleigh, because there's a back-up generator keeping things running, and we're in

lower manhattan, the hardest hit part of the city. >> it is pitch black down there at night, i can tell you right now. it's reminiscent of 9/11. alison, thank you so much, and thank you for coming to work and getting there. that was a herculean effort. we're trying to repair your damaged home. boy, are you in for a surprise. news about insurance coming up in just a moment.

>> they descended upon the area as it were expected to be the worst hit, booking up holtzs and getting ready to be where they needed to be within the hours of the storm clouds passing.

that's the good news. there is indeed fine print. in millions of those policies, it's kwoon expensive surprise to people who can least with stand any more spreezs, and christine romans is here to talk about that, and, also, to talk about how insurance actually kicks in. before we say that, i want to show some video of a tree falling for a good reason. have a look at this. watch as this thing comes down. oh, you don't want to see this if it's your backyard in huntington, new york. >> there it goes. >> it looks like it's going to fall on the neighbor's, christine. at the very least it took out that shed and the fence, right? it may have hit the neighbor's house. that is a tree fall that is covered by insurance. if your house is hit, it's your homeowners insurance that's paid. if it's your little shed and your fence that's paid, most policies that covers it. >> the neighbor that just got hit by that tree, doesn't have

to call the house with the tree to say your insurance needs to cover my mess? it's your tree. >> if my tree fell on your house, you call your insurance agent and your insurance handles it. i mean, it's your house, it's insured no matter whose tree it is. if the tree was negligent, it had been dangling over and there was a problem, then both of your insurance companies, they're going to hash it out. maybe you're going to get your deductible back. this is what we're seeing a lot of. trees in homes, trees on roofs. basically if the tree falls and hits a structure, you're covered under your homeowners insurance, with a deductible, of course. if the tree falls in your front yard on to the street, it's probably going to be your utility and your township that's going to take care of it. i suggest calling your town and finding out what their policy is. they'll come and take it away. >> if the tree falls on your car? >> that's your car insurance. your car is your car. if your car is flooded out, that's your car insurance. if you don't have a comprehensive policy, you're going to be in trouble with your car. a lot of people car's damages up and down the coast.

without a comprehensive policy, you're kind of out of luck. >> what about this? the hurricane came ashore as an official hurricane, and then was changed to tropical storm. that's important. that means something to the policy that is many people have. xloo it means that you may have something called a hurricane deductible triggered, and what is that? well, say you think your deductible is $500. that's the average deductible people have is $500. if it's a hurricane and in your state you have hurricane deductibles and these are, by the way, in place all across the path of sandy, you're going to pay a percentage of the home's value, ashleigh. >> not that one lump hundred. >> you're going to pay -- for example, if it's a 5% hurricane deductible on a $300,000 house, you're paying $15,000. >> as opposed to what most people think. >> look on the declarations page of your policy. it's probably the first page. find out if either says tropical cyclone deductible or hurricane deductible. some policies the deductible doesn't kick in until hurricane category two. please, please look very

carefully. you might be paying more out of pocket than you think. >> you and i are going to be talking a lot in the days to come. christine romans. dloo there was so much more coverage ahead. please stay tuned to cnn as we blanket the storm's affects. i'm going to pass my baton to suzanne malveaux who continues with "newsroom." thanks for watching. anncr: every president inherits challenges. few have faced so many. four years later... our enemies have been brought to justice. our heroes are coming home. assembly lines are humming again. there are still challenges to meet. children to educate. a middle class to rebuild. but the last thing we should do is turn back now.

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